Searching for Black Confederates by Kevin Levin

PatYoung

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I review historian Kevin M. Levin's new book on the Myth of the Black Confederates. This fell-good fairy tale was fostered by the Sons of Confederate Veterans and spread along with other junk history on the internet. Levin looks at the real role of African Americans in the Confederacy, the historical distortion wrought by those trying to paint the Confederacy as a multi-cultural freedom movement, and the ways historians are fighting back.
https://thereconstructionera.com/book-review-searching-for-black-confederates-by-kevin-levin/
 

jgoodguy

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I review historian Kevin M. Levin's new book on the Myth of the Black Confederates. This fell-good fairy tale was fostered by the Sons of Confederate Veterans and spread along with other junk history on the internet. Levin looks at the real role of African Americans in the Confederacy, the historical distortion wrought by those trying to paint the Confederacy as a multi-cultural freedom movement, and the ways historians are fighting back.
https://thereconstructionera.com/book-review-searching-for-black-confederates-by-kevin-levin/
From your review

Kevin Levin traces the origins of the Black Confederate Myth to the 1970s. The Civil Rights Movement of the decade before made continued open adherence to white supremacy untenable for Confederate heritage groups like the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) and prompted them to posit a de-racialized version of the Confederacy. The armed Confederate rebellion to preserve slavery was transformed into a Southern Rights Movement that had the interests of Black Southerners as much at heart as it did the rights of white slaveholders.​

According to Levin, the Confederate Heritage folks:

“hoped to demonstrate that if free and enslaved black men fought in Confederate ranks, the war could not have been fought to abolish slavery. Stories of armed black men marching and fighting would make it easier for the descendants of Confederate soldiers and those who celebrate Confederate heritage to embrace their Lost Cause unapologetically without running the risk of being viewed as racially insensitive or worse.” (p. 4)

So, oddly enough, this peculiar institution of historical falsification came as a result of a desire by some descendants of white Confederates to retroactively transform their ancestors into racial egalitarians so that the descendants of enslaved people, supposedly believing that their own ancestors may have been Black Confederates, would embrace a Rainbow version of the Lost Cause! Or at least, and more promisingly, the Confederate Heritagers hoped that other whites, with a low interest in the Civil War, would allow them to continue to display Confederate Battle Flags and erect statues to Confederate heroes without thinking them racists.

While the myth was developed nearly a half-century ago to serve a specific function, many people today who believe in it, writes Levin, are completely unaware of its origins. One does not have to be a racist to believe the myth. School kids in Virginia have been taught it, and many people encounter it in Google searches while researching African American participation in the Civil War. The myth has even been repeated in museum exhibits and at National Park Service sites. Most people innocently encountering it don’t realize that for the first hundred years after the bombardment of Fort Sumter no one heard of Black Confederates.​
 

Viper21

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Most people innocently encountering it don’t realize that for the first hundred years after the bombardment of Fort Sumter no one heard of Black Confederates.
That's simply not true. We've all seen the 100's of newspaper articles @Andersonh1 has posted. On top of that, the subject has been approached in other formats as well. The exact phrase, "Black Confederate" may not have been in use but, the subject was definitely talked about some in the hundred year period after Ft. Sumter.

 

Andersonh1

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I'm curious to read this book at some point and see how it lines up with what I've found and continue to find. Does Levin include a good list of sources he used for his research?
 

Andersonh1

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That's simply not true. We've all seen the 100's of newspaper articles @Andersonh1 has posted. On top of that, the subject has been approached in other formats as well. The exact phrase, "Black Confederate" may not have been in use but, the subject was definitely talked about some in the hundred year period after Ft. Sumter.

In addition, I'd point out that when the newspapers covered the lives of black men who had served in some capacity or who identified with the Confederate veterans, these black men were often referred to as soldiers or veterans, even if they had been a slave during the war, or if they were employed as teamsters, cooks, musicians, etc. I'm talking about articles dated to the late 1800s or early 1900s, long before Ken Burns and Roots and Glory came along.

Does Levin address these post-war newspaper accounts, and if so, how does he characterize the point of view they represent?
 

jgoodguy

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That's simply not true. We've all seen the 100's of newspaper articles @Andersonh1 has posted. On top of that, the subject has been approached in other formats as well. The exact phrase, "Black Confederate" may not have been in use but, the subject was definitely talked about some in the hundred year period after Ft. Sumter.

Looks like 'Black Confederates' got discovered 40 years after the war.
 

jgoodguy

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In addition, I'd point out that when the newspapers covered the lives of black men who had served in some capacity or who identified with the Confederate veterans, these black men were often referred to as soldiers or veterans, even if they had been a slave during the war, or if they were employed as teamsters, cooks, musicians, etc. I'm talking about articles dated to the late 1800s or early 1900s, long before Ken Burns and Roots and Glory came along.

Does Levin address these post-war newspaper accounts, and if so, how does he characterize the point of view they represent?
All in how one defines 'Black Confederate' As both your thread and my Black Confederate Count thread discovered, very few Military Black Confederates were found. The spreadsheet for BCC is on my cloud drive. My personal experience is when folks at reenactments talked of Black Confederates it was the rifle carriers, not wood or food carriers. That is what Levin is looking for.
 

Andersonh1

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All in how one defines 'Black Confederate' As both your thread and my Black Confederate Count thread discovered, very few Military Black Confederates were found. The spreadsheet for BCC is on my cloud drive. My personal experience is when folks at reenactments talked of Black Confederates it was the rifle carriers, not wood or food carriers. That is what Levin is looking for.
That would be consistent with what he often discusses on his blog, and from my own research, I think that's too narrow a segment of the black population to focus on. But I'm still interested in seeing his research.
 

Viper21

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Looks like 'Black Confederates' got discovered 40 years after the war.
Looks like it was "discovered" earlier than that. Perhaps you missed the earlier spike on the graph. Having said that, its clear the subject was approached long before the 1960's. Meaning, the claim, nobody heard of Black Confederates for 100 years after Ft Sumter, is bogus. Which was my point.
 

Andersonh1

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Looks like it was "discovered" earlier than that. Perhaps you missed the earlier spike on the graph. Having said that, its clear the subject was approached long before the 1960's. Meaning, the claim, nobody heard of Black Confederates for 100 years after Ft Sumter, is bogus. Which was my point.
One example:
... There was one Confederate soldier who was a coal black Negro. He had been captured in the Confederate ranks at Gettysburg. He endured confinement and chances of death in the prison nearly two years rather than take the oath of allegiance. He was the most bitter rebel I ever saw..." - The Richmond Daily Dispatch, August 20, 1880

If Levin got this basic fact wrong, i.e. "for the first hundred years after the bombardment of Fort Sumter no one heard of Black Confederates", can we trust his research and conclusions in the rest of the book? Maybe, maybe not.
 

jgoodguy

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Looks like it was "discovered" earlier than that. Perhaps you missed the earlier spike on the graph. Having said that, its clear the subject was approached long before the 1960's. Meaning, the claim, nobody heard of Black Confederates for 100 years after Ft Sumter, is bogus. Which was my point.
your chart says that about 2 people in 10 million may have heard of Confederate Negro. That is pretty close to nobody.
 

Andersonh1

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Interesting quote from 19th Georgia:

“The 10th Alabama Regiment was the best in the army. This thought with all the regiments made the Southern army the best the world ever saw. In our regiment we had judges from the bench, lawyers of high rank from their offices, merchants of wealth from stores, farmers of large plantations, and numerous negroes who served through the war as privates.”
-William W. Draper (Captain and Adjutant, 10th Alabama Infantry)
Confederate Veteran, Volume 15 (1907), p.487​
 

jgoodguy

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One example:
... There was one Confederate soldier who was a coal black Negro. He had been captured in the Confederate ranks at Gettysburg. He endured confinement and chances of death in the prison nearly two years rather than take the oath of allegiance. He was the most bitter rebel I ever saw..." - The Richmond Daily Dispatch, August 20, 1880

If Levin got this basic fact wrong, i.e. "for the first hundred years after the bombardment of Fort Sumter no one heard of Black Confederates", can we trust his research and conclusions in the rest of the book? Maybe, maybe not.
Are you suggesting that Levin is wrong because he missed a questionable news article in 1880? You remember my challenge to find an armed black confederate in the 40 year run of the Confederate Veteran Magazine.
 

jgoodguy

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Interesting quote from 19th Georgia:

“The 10th Alabama Regiment was the best in the army. This thought with all the regiments made the Southern army the best the world ever saw. In our regiment we had judges from the bench, lawyers of high rank from their offices, merchants of wealth from stores, farmers of large plantations, and numerous negroes who served through the war as privates.”
-William W. Draper (Captain and Adjutant, 10th Alabama Infantry)
Confederate Veteran, Volume 15 (1907), p.487​
Interesting, but as we found out in the Black Confederate Count, CSA black privates were conscripts to tote stuff other than rifles.
link
BorderRuffian May 29, 2014 @ 4:18
“The 10th Alabama Regiment was the best in the army. This thought with all the regiments made the Southern army the best the world ever saw. In our regiment we had judges from the bench, lawyers of high rank from their offices, merchants of wealth from stores, farmers of large plantations, and numerous negroes who served through the war as privates.”

-William W. Draper (served as Captain and Adjutant of the 10th Alabama Infantry)
Confederate Veteran, Volume 15 (1907), p.487

There were no blacks enlisted in the 10th Alabama. So what does Mr. Draper mean?
Perhaps Andy Hall can explain it for us…

reply link
Kevin Levin May 29, 2014 @ 4:31
This is a wonderful source. Now follow up and find the military records to corroborate the claim.

reply link
Andy May 29, 2014 @ 5:57
That’s a really intriguing quote, BR/Battalion. I’m curious to know more about the men he’s talking about, too. You’ll let us know what you find, won’t you?

reply link
Forester May 29, 2014 @ 8:02
Without additional context, that quote is too vague to mean anything. In the 1800s, the word “as” was commonly used for comparisons. “Served as Privates” could be a lazy, pseudo-poetic way of saying “served LIKE privates.” It would be consistent with how he describes “judges from the bench” and “merchants of wealth,” instead of simply saying judges and merchants. Without any other quotes or evidence to provide context, he just may be invoking hyperbolic language to emphasize how useful their slaves were.​
 

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Andersonh1

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Are you suggesting that Levin is wrong because he missed a questionable news article in 1880? You remember my challenge to find an armed black confederate in the 40 year run of the Confederate Veteran Magazine.
If his thesis truly is that "no one heard of black Confederates" for a century, and he has not done the research necessary to confirm that what he's claiming is actually true, yes, he's wrong. He should have done more detailed research or qualified his statement. And he may have, I haven't read the book yet to confirm that so I'm arguing based on a review and not the book itself, so I may revise my opinion in future.
 
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jgoodguy

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If his thesis truly is that "no one heard of black Confederates" for a century, and he has not done the research necessary to confirm that what he's claiming is actually true, yes, he's wrong. He should have done more detailed research or qualified his statement. And he may have, I haven't read the book yet to confirm that so I'm arguing based on a review and not the book itself, so I may revise my opinion in future.
It will be no fun if you revise your opinion.

Maybe I can sweet talk Kevin into sending me a review copy and we can have real fun.
 

jgoodguy

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That would be consistent with what he often discusses on his blog, and from my own research, I think that's too narrow a segment of the black population to focus on. But I'm still interested in seeing his research.
Everyone has an opinion on Black Confederates. I want a notarized photo of a black in Confederate gray shooting in the direction of Union Soldiers, but not likely to get one.
 

jgoodguy

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When I get around to it, I'll suggest that Kevin revise his statement to less than 1 in 10 million US citizens had heard of black confederate soldiers. However as near as I can determine he is 9999999.7% accurate.
 

Viper21

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The real myth, is to say they didn't exist, or that "nobody heard of em for 100yrs after the war". That's simply not true.

But hey.... don't let facts get in the way of a narrative....
 
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